Separable packaging and layering machine therefore

ABSTRACT

In accordance with one aspect of the invention, a material, such as a plastic film, is used to separate independent food elements. The independent food elements and the separation material are packaged together using a unifying outer package. At a point in time when the customer decides to eat the food, the outer package is opened and the film that separates the different food elements is removed, either manually or automatically. This marks the first point in time that the separate elements come into contact with each other. Therefore, the food product is maintained at the highest level of integrity until the time of usage by the customer. Methods and a machine for layering the contents of the packages so as to form a completed assembly for the packaged elements is also described.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to separable packaging and methods and amachine for dispensing the contents of separable packages, preferably ina layered manner. More specifically, it relates to packaged foodproducts such as sandwiches or other foods that have at least twoindependent elements such as cheese, meats or vegetables, or other foodrelated items having related elements, such as spaghetti and tomatosauce, a salad and a salad dressing, or even the forenoted spaghetti andtomato sauce and a bowl for holding the just combined spaghetti andsauce,. The invention also relates to methods and a machine fordispensing the contents of separable packages, preferably in a layeredmanner, so as to form a completed assembly for the dispensed contents ofthe packages. The present invention is particularly advantageous forautomated machine preparation and vending of multi-element foodproducts.

2. Background Information and Description of the Related Art

Currently, foods such as these are often packaged fully assembled, inwhich case the separate elements come into contact with other elementsat the time the contents of the packages are assembled. For example, inthe case of a simple cheese sandwich, the cheese will contact the breadand after a period of time, the bread will soak up the moisture from thecheese and the bread will become soggy, leading to a lower qualityproduct and a degradation of textures. In the case of tomato sauce mixedtogether with the pasta at the point in time when and where it ispackaged, the pasta can soak up the moisture from the tomato sauce andthe texture and taste will degrade. Existing methods of layering foodproducts include doing it by hand, as is done every day at anyrestaurant, or by automated machinery which may dispense out of a bulkstorage area. These methods require that various portions of theingredients are exposed to ambient air and other environment conditionsduring handling and storage time until all of the ingredients are usedup when making the finished products are thrown away due to dating orspoilage. In addition, the kitchen or environment where the elements arelayered and the objects or hands that contact the food elements aredifficult to keep sanitized at all times. Freshness and sanitaryconditions are a key concern. Additionally, spoilage and laborrequirements are other issues that must be taken into account.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with one aspect of a preferred embodiment of the presentinvention, a material, such as a plastic film, is used to separateindependent food elements that may be used to form a more complex, i.e.,multi-element, food item. The independent food elements and separationmaterial are packaged together using a unifying outer package. The outerpackage can be vacuum-sealed so as to help maintain the freshness andprovide significant shelf-life for the food items. At the point in timewhen a customer decides to eat the food, the outer package is opened andthe film that separates the different food elements is removed, eithermanually or automatically. This marks the first point in time that theseparate elements come into contact with each other. Therefore, theindividual food elements are maintained at the highest level ofintegrity until the time of usage by the customer.

In accordance with further aspects of the present invention, theseparation material can be part of or attached to the outer package andthe outer package can be opened by use of a pull-strip that can dividethe package into two separate halves.

Furthermore, with separable packaging having these aspects, a packageopening machine may be used to automatically pull the pull-strip toseparate the outer package. Then, the package opening machine may applypressure on the outer package as the two halves of the outer package arepulled apart, so that the food contents in the package do not move withrespect to one another, yet allow the separation material to be removedby sliding out from between the food elements, thereby allowing theseparated food elements to finally come into contact with each other.

In one embodiment of the present invention, there can be a primary foodelement such as a piece of bread or a quantity of pasta that can beresting on a sanitary substrate surface such as a plastic film or abowl. In one embodiment of the invention this primary food element canbe packaged in a vacuum-sealed plastic film pouch along with therespective sanitary substrate surface, and both can be dispensed out ofthe pouch onto a preparation surface that is positioned adjacent to thepackage opening mechanism. The sanitary preparation surface can bestationary, or can move to multiple positions, such as with a conveyor,a rotary table or a moving platform. The primary food element, such asthe forenoted piece of bread, can be positioned on the sanitarysubstrate surface and adjacent to the package opening mechanism. Whenthe package opening mechanism dispenses a second food element out of afurther pouch, the second food element is positioned on top of theprimary food element. These steps can be repeated multiple times untilthe desired layering process results in a completed assembly of the foodproduct. The ability of the preparation surface to move as describedabove enables the various ingredients and respective pouches to bepositioned at specific locations, and the food elements can travel onthe preparation surface to a point adjacent to the vacuum-sealed pouchof the next ingredient desired to be layered.

In an alternate embodiment, the pouches can be moved to a common stationwhere they are automatically opened and dispensed in a desired sequence,and thereby layered one on top of another. In an even furtherembodiment, multiple package opening mechanisms can be positionedadjacent to a common moving or fixed preparation surface, and one ormore of the package opening mechanisms can contribute to the layeringprocess for making the final food product.

In a preferred embodiment, successive ones of the pouches can beconnected together in a continuous fashion by forming them out of atleast two lengths of plastic packaging film and connected one to theother in a manner that enables each pouch to be separately opened. Inaccordance with one aspect of the invention, such separable opening ofeach pouch can be provided by a roller mechanism having a respective oneof two roller connected to each of the at least two layers of film thatform the outside layers of the food element pouch. The film is woundaround the rollers, so that as the rollers wind the film up, the pouchis thereby separated/opened, and the product in the pouch is ejected ordispensed from the pouch. In this way many elements can be layered in asanitary and fresh manner without the need for human contact, and whiledramatically reducing the costs and health risks of spoilage.Alternatively, the packages can be provided one at a time to the packageopening machine.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates one embodiment of the inventive packaging.

FIG. 2 illustrates the FIG. 1 embodiment with food elements packagedtherein.

FIG. 3 illustrates a further embodiment of the inventive packaging.

FIG. 4 illustrates an even further embodiment of the inventivepackaging.

FIG. 5 shows a layering machine which uses separable packing, where theseparable packages are oriented vertically with respect to a movingpreparation surface.

FIGS. 6 a, 6 b, and 6 c show the preparation surface moving concurrentlywith the dispensing operation of the layering machine.

FIGS. 7 a, 7 b, and 7 c show the dispensing operations of the layeringmachine with a stationary preparation surface.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIG. 1 illustrates a separable package 10 for containing therein variousindependent elements, such as food elements. The package 10 comprises anouter package barrier 12 that completely seals therein the variousindependent elements (the various independent elements not being shownin FIG. 1, and an inner divider arrangement 14. In the FIG. 1embodiment, divider arrangement 14 comprises a continuous web or film ofmaterial, such as a sheet of plastic, which is folded so as to provide aphysical separation between layered areas or zones 2, 4, 6 and 8 insidepackage barrier 12. More specifically, divider arrangement 14 is show inFIG. 1 as comprising a continuous web of film that starts at layer 16near an end A of package 10, extends to an opposed side B of package 10,folds back on itself as layer 17, and then becomes attached to side A.It then extends out from side A toward side B as layer 18, and thenfolds back on itself as layer 19. Since there are to be other elementsinside package 10 that need separation, a curved section 20 is formed atthe end of layer 19 near end A, so that layer 19 makes a 180 degree turnback towards end B. The arrangement of layers 16-19 is then repeated, soas to form layered film divider arrangements 24 and 26. Thus, as shownin FIG. 1, by repeating this process the four separate layered zones 2,4, 6 and 8 are established.

It is noted that package barrier 12 is easily separable into two partsusing any of several well know techniques, such as, for example,including in barrier 12 a “pull/tear strip” 22 that surrounds package12, or by using a line of perforations in the material forming packagebarrier 12, such that pulling at the opposed ends A and B of the package10 cause the barrier material 12 to separate along the perforations.

Package 10 can be used to contain therein food elements useful formaking a more complex food creation, such as a sandwich, for example, inwhich case the separate zones can be used to hold:

a. Deli meats

b. Cheeses

c. Vegetable ingredients (such as lettuce, tomato, pickles, onions,olives, etc.)

d. Bread products (such as sliced rolls, bagels, pita bread, rye bread,etc)

e. Liquid condiments (such as ketchup, mayonnaise, oil and vinegar,etc.)

In accordance with a further aspect of this invention, when one of thelayers is to hold an element having a high liquid content, that layercould be replaced with a separable sealed pouch in place of a dividerarrangement such as layers 16-19. In this case, the separable pouch, notshown, would be similar to package barrier 12, but smaller, and placedinside one of the zones, such as zone 4. The opposed ends of the pouchcould be secured to the opposed ends A and B of package 10, and aportion near the center of the pouch, or along the length of the pouch,could be perforated or have a flap sealing an opening, so that uponseparation of package barrier 12, the internal pouch having the highliquid content becomes separable or un-sealed and its contents arespilled or otherwise allowed to contact the food elements positioned inzones of the package 10 that are adjacent thereto.

FIG. 2 illustrates food elements positioned in the FIG. 1. package formaking a sandwich, where zones 2, 4, 6, and 8 may hold a respective foodelement d, a, b and d, for example, of the above list. May variationsare possible, such as more or less separable zones, and the use of oneor more internal separable sealed pouches for high liquid or other foodelements for which a more complete isolation of that food element isdesirable until the final assembly of the multi-element food item.

In operation, the package with the food elements and dividerarrangements therein, can be fabricated using standard and conventionalfood handling and packaging equipment. It may also be desirable tovacuum seal package barrier 12, as well as any internal pouches that maybe included therein. To open the package barrier 12, the pull strip 22is used to separate the package 10 into two halves when the ends A and Bare pulled apart. As they are pulled apart and package barrier 12separates, layers 17 and 18 are withdrawn from between layers 16 and 19that are adjacent to adjacent ones of the food elements, and as they arewithdrawn, layers 16 and are also withdrawn, until the dividerarrangement 14 is completely removed and no longer separates the foodelements in zones 2 and 4.

This arrangement where layers 17 and 18 slide against adjacent layers 16and 20 during dispensing of the food elements contained therein, isparticularly advantageous since the plastic layers can more easily slidewith respect to one another as compared with sliding against a foodelement. Additionally, in accordance with another aspect of theinvention, an food grade lubricant can be used inside package 10 so asto further assist with the dispensing of the food elements so that thefood elements don't stick to the film layers as package 10 is beingseparated.

It is noted that there are many different ways to accomplish thefunction provided by the FIG. 1 embodiment. For example, instead ofusing a continuous folding film to form the divider arrangement whichmakes zones 2-8, each divider arrangement 14, 24 and 26 could be formedusing separately folded arrangements 32, 34, and 36, such as shown inFIG. 3.

Additionally, one could form the divider arrangement by attachment ofthe film which forms the layers of the divider to both of ends A and Bof package barrier 12, instead of just at end B. An example of thisembodiment is shown in FIG. 4, wherein overlapping film/sheets 42/44 and46/48 extend from the opposed ends of package 10 to form a dividerarrangement to make zones 2, 4, and 6. In operation, package separationcan be accomplished using the pull strip 22 as in the previouslydescribed embodiment, so that as the opposed ends A and B are pulledapart, sheets 42 and 46 stay with end B, while sheets 44 and 48 staywith end A, thereby allowing the food elements from zones 2, 4, and 6 tocontact each other and form the completed food product.

In further alternative embodiments, it may be desirable for the foodelements in the package to be heated before being served to the user, inwhich case a microwave oven can be used to heat the contents of thepackage before it is opened, or the contents could be heated after thepackage has been opened and the food elements have already been broughttogether.

In an even further embodiment, it is not necessary that each zone in thepackage have a food element stored therein, and instead have a foodrelated item. For example, in one embodiment of the invention, a lowerzone could contain a bowl, a zone above that zone contain pasta, and atop zone contain an openable pouch with sauce.

FIGS. 5, 6 and 7 will now be described, which show various orientationsbetween a machine which opens separable packages and a primary substrateonto which products in the separable packages are dispensed during thepreparation of the layered product. It is noted that the separablepackages in the following description may not necessarily be the same asthe separable packages 10 shown in FIGS. 14, and in fact in oneembodiment may merely comprise a pouch formed by sealing togetheropposed ends of a two adjacently positioned rectangular sheets of aplastic film.

More specifically, in FIG. 5 a stationary layering machine 200 providesthe separable packages 202 vertically with respect to a preparationsurface 8 that moves in the direction of arrow 2. In FIG. 6 thepreparation surface 8 moves concurrently with the pouch as it is beingdispensed by the layering machine 200, and in FIG. 7 the preparationsurface 8 is stationary with respect to the pouch dispensing operationof the layering machine 200.

In FIG. 5, package 202 includes a food element 6 packaged in a plasticfilm 5. The film 5 is wrapped around rollers 3 and when the rollers turnin opposing directions relative to each other, the food element 6 isejected out of the pouch and is positioned, for example, onto a primaryfood element 4 which is resting on a sanitary film substrate 7. Filmsubstrate 7 is resting on preparation surface 8.

In FIGS. 6 a, 6 b and 6 c, a package 202 includes a food element 6packaged in a plastic film 5. The film 5 is wrapped around rollers 3 andwhen the rollers turn in an opposing directions relative to each other,the food element 6 is ejected out of the package 202 and is positionedonto the primary food element 4 which is resting on a sanitary filmsubstrate 7. Film substrate 7 is resting on preparation surface 8.

As noted above, in FIGS. 7 a, 7 b, and 7 c, the preparation surface 8 isstationary with respect to the food element dispensing operation of thelayering machine 200.

The system can be housed in a housing such as a vending machine, atabletop box for store use or out in the open in the case of a kitchen.A control system can be linked to the dispensing mechanism so that acustomer can customize the food elements that are layered. The entireprocess can be open to viewing through a window or port. The unit canalso receive payments and be responsive to customer inputs. The systemcan also be utilized for non food products.

The pouches can contain food elements such as vegetables, cheese, meat,bread and liquids such as condiments and sauces.

The pouches can be stored in a accordion fashion, folded back and forthagainst one another, or can be stored in a roll or simply one pouch at atime separated from the others.

If the pouch is made of a foil material, the pouch can be transferredinto a cooking environment, such as a clam shell hot cooking press whichcan for example, cook an uncooked burger or filet prior to the foodelement being dispensed.

If the pouch is plastic film, the food element can be cooked in variousmanners including using microwave technology prior to being dispensedand positioned onto another element.

The food elements can also be cooked automatically after they arelayered and before being dispensed through a vending machine port, suchas in the case of pizza.

It is intended that the present invention not be limited to thedescribed embodiments, but that it has the full scope as defined by theabove descriptions and alternatives, as well as equivalents thereof. Itshould be realized that none of the food items could also be packedusing this invention.

1. A separable pouch for containing food items therein, comprising: apouch having opposed ends and first and second barrier sheet memberspositioned one on top of another for forming said pouch therebetween, aportion of said first and second barrier sheet members positionedbetween said opposed ends of the pouch including a separation structure,said separation structure functioning to allow said pouch to separateinto at least two pieces, each piece including one of said first andsecond opposed ends of the pouch when said separation structure isactivated, and further including additional barrier sheet memberspositioned inside the pouch for keeping food items stored between theadditional sheet members from coming in contact with each other whileinside the pouch, thereby creating separation zones inside the pouch forholding food items, and wherein, said additional barrier sheet membersare connected to at least one of said opposed ends of the pouch, so thatwhen the ends of said pouch are separated, said additional barrier sheetmembers remain connected to said at least one end of the pouch, therebyremoving the separate zones between the food items inside the pouch. 2.The separable pouch of claim 1, wherein at least one of said additionalbarrier sheet members comprises at least two further sheet barriermembers, each of the further barrier sheet members extend inside thepouch from one opposed end toward the other opposed end.
 3. Theseparable pouch of claim 1, further including: a machine forautomatically opening a plurality of the separable pouches for forming alayered product of food elements as each of said pouches is separated.4. The separable pouch of claim 1, wherein at least one of saidadditional barrier sheet members comprises a further barrier sheetmember that starts at a point connected to one end of the pouch andextends inside the pouch toward the other end of the pouch to a pointthat establishes a distal end for a separation zone created thereby,said further barrier sheet member then folds back on itself and endsnear the one end of the pouch.
 5. The separable pouch of claim 4,wherein two further barrier sheet members, each folded back on itself,are positioned one on top of another, for defining one side of aseparation zone inside said pouch, said folded back on each other twofurther barrier sheet members forming four barrier sheet members, wherethe two inside barrier members are connected to the one end of thepouch.
 6. The separable pouch of claim 5, wherein the further barriersheet member which forms a bottom of one separation zone extends insidethe pouch so as to form a top barrier sheet member for a separation zonethat is positioned thereunder.
 7. The separable pouch of claim 1,wherein said separation structure is connected to a portion of saidfirst and second barrier sheet members which form said pouch, betweensaid opposed ends of the pouch.
 8. The separable pouch of claim 7,wherein said separation structure comprises a weakness built into thefirst and second barrier sheet members, so that when the opposed endsare pulled in opposite directions, said pouch separates into at leasttwo portions.
 9. The separable pouch of claim 8, wherein said weaknessis formed by perforations in said first and second barrier sheetmembers.